Erdoğan signals flexibility for anti-ISIL coalition

President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has indicated possible flexibility regarding Turkey’s stance in its contribution to the coalition against the jihadi Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL), Hurriyet Daily News reports.

“We’ll make a decision after having extensive discussions with the coalition forces about the next road map,” Erdoğan said on Sept. 21 at a press conference before departing for the U.N. General Assembly in New York.

He added that the Turkish hostages who had been held by ISIL forces were one of the reasons why Ankara had declined to sign a joint communique in Jeddah pledging combat support in the international anti-ISIL coalition.

“We said we could only give logistical support and humanitarian assistance within this framework. The issue about the next process is a different matter,” Erdoğan said, adding that he had a meeting with Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoğlu in the morning about the issue.